Help for head lice

Lice season is upon us. Make sure your little ones don't get infestations with these top tips...

Head lice are a common scourge of school children of all social strata. These tiny grey parasites are about the size of a sesame seed, and can easily be seen, although they hide quickly when exposed to light. Their eggs, called nits, are barely visible whitish ovals cemented to hair shafts.

Head lice are spread by personal contact and by shared brushes, combs, hats and other personal items. The infestation sometimes extends into the eyebrows and eyelashes.

Children may hardly notice head lice or may have only a vague scalp irritation in the beginning. With advanced infestation, the scalp may become red and inflamed, with swollen glands near the area where the lice are living.

What to do
The most common treatment for head lice is to kill the adults with an insecticidal shampoo and to clear out the nits with a special fine-toothed comb. Of the medications for lice, permethrin is the safest, most effective, and most pleasant to use, and is available over the counter. For best results, follow the directions exactly. Other family members should be treated as well.

To eliminate all lice and successfully prevent reinfection, wash all clothing, towels and bed linen in hot, soapy water, and dry them in a hot dryer. You can also disinfect bedding and other items such as hats and clothing by placing them in a sealed plastic bag for 14 days. The nits will hatch in about a week and die of starvation. Brushes and combs can be disinfected by soaking them in hot, soapy water for 10 minutes.

If you prefer to avoid the use of insecticides, try a "combing only" technique. Wash the hair with an ordinary shampoo and conditioner and leave wet. With a fine-toothed comb, stroke slowly outward from the roots through one lock of hair at a time. Lice will land on the back of the comb, get caught between the teeth, or fall off. Space at least 30 strokes over the head. Repeat every three days. Because new-born lice don't lay eggs for the first week, all lice should disappear after about two weeks of combing.

(Ilse Pauw, Health24, January 2013)